Review of The Cotton Club (1984) by Byron B — 23 Sep 2014

The main reason why I watched this was that I worked on a stage show starring Maurice Hines and he mentioned this as a highlight of his and his brother's career. Most of the song and dance numbers don't advance the plot, which weakens the story overall.

However, it is too bad that this lost so much money upon release because, separately, the musical numbers and the plot about crime and fame have such good production values. Gregory and Maurice Hines play tap dancing brothers based on their own relationship and performing styles.

Gregory's character goes solo at the famous Cotton Club in Harlem, which was only open to white audiences. His character falls for a woman of mixed race. Otherwise, Coppola and whoever really deserves credit for writing don't seem to know how to develop the black characters.

They are still pushed to the background. Bob Hoskins and James Remar play real life gangsters, Owney Madden and Dutch Schultz, respectively. Richard Gere and Nicolas Cage play a pair of brothers, as well.

And each of them is loosely based on a real person, though not a real pair of brothers. Gere, who is really playing the trumpet on the soundtrack, plays the character Dixie Dwyer, who is likely a version of the 30s and 40s actor George Raft.

The award nominated editing and art direction are eye catching. Coppola does generally direct a team that can visually quote other classic films of the genre and the era. But mainly, because of the ensemble cast, and actors playing celebrities in cameo roles, this deserves another look.